Class 
Book 






in iUcmoviam. 



ROSCOE CONKLING. 



•' St bib not fall 
"fiht broopinq flototrs tb:it no man notittth. 
'i'mt like ;i great branch of some stately tree, 
Knit in a temprst nnb flung boron to brail), 
Sbick roitb green lt;if;igt." * * * * 



BY TR»NSFER. 

JUN 3 '910 



g? i* o cccdings 



Senate and Assembly 



jltate of 3Uuu ilovU, 



EX-SENATOR ROSCOE CONKLING, 



CAPITOL, MAY 9, 1888. 



A I. HA N V : 

WEED, PARSONS AND COMPANY, 

i 889. 



5" Nt 



WvatzzttivLQS 



legislate of the State of |jfeuj |)oi!lt, 



IN RELATION TO II I K IUiATIl OK 



Ex-Senator Roscoe Conkling. 



in Assembly: 

April 18, 1888. 

Mr. Husted, addressing the Chair, spoke as 
follows : 

Mr. Speaker. — At fifty minutes after one this 
morning ROSCOE CONKLING passed away. When 
I make that statement I think this House will unani- 
mously concur with me that we have a right to devi- 
ate from the usual course whereby we offer resolutions 
five minutes before the hour of adjournment. 

I think this House will concur with me that a man 
so distinguished as he has been, that a man who has 
served this State so many years so faithfully and so 
well, who won for himself the first rank among Ameri- 



Legislative 8?E0cccding« 



i. hi orators, American publicists and American states- 
men, d ideration from the members 
of the Legislature of the Stat, of New York. 

sir, but nine 5 ince, in this i : 

nominated htm for Senator of the United States. I 
did it then with pleasure and with pride. With grief 
and sorrow 1 now announce his death, and I beg 
leave, sir, to submit the following resolutions, which I 
will read myself: 

/, That the Assembly learns with deep sorrow of the death 
of Hon mini;. 

i i u his distinguished public services, his high standard 
1 and personal integrity, merit the 

• (his State. 

Thai as Representative and Senatoi in Congress he won 

the admiration of his colleagues and the plaudits of the Nation. 

I hat a joint i insisting 

of live Si . mbly, lie appointed 

by the presiding officers of the respective Houses, to prepari 

Li' .rial of the public services of the deceased . . r 1 1 . .r and states- 

I to report to tie I hat furthei action shall be 

memory the respei tful tribute of their 

I hat out of respect to his memory this Mouse do now 
adjourn. 

I he resolutions, by a rising vote, were unani 
mously adopted. 



In IHcmoviam. 



In Senate: 

April 18, 1888. 
Senator Coggeshall offered the following - : 

Resolved, That the Senate of the State of New York learns with 
deep sorrow and profound regret of the death of the Hon. Roscoe 
Conkling. His long and distinguished services in Congress as a 
Representative and Senator from the State of New York, his great 
intellectual attainments and brilliant record, his honesty of public 
career and integrity, his loyalty of friendship and nobility of char- 
acter, his illustrious and successful achievements, make his name 
and fame the common heritage of our State and Nation, and enshrine 
him in the hearts of the people. 

Resolved (if the Assembly concur). That a committee of five Sena- 
tors and nine Members of the Assembly be appointed by the Presi- 
dent of the Senate and the Speaker of the Assembly to attend the 
funeral of Mr. Conkling, and to make arrangements for appropriate 
memorial services by the Legislature. 

Senators Coggeshall, Low and Cantor spoke 
to the resolutions, and they were unanimously 
adopted by a rising vote. 

The Assembly sent for concurrence the follow- 
ing resolutions: 

Resolved, That the Assembly learns with deep sorrow of the death 
of Hon. Roscoe Conkling. 

Resolved, That his distinguished public services, his high standard 
of public honor, and his official and personal integrity, merit the 
acknowledgment of the people of this State. 



LcnisUitiuc SPtoccctUngs. 



Republican lias won 

the adiiiii.iih.il 

ncut i. Thai a joint ■ insisting 

nine Members "i ihe Assembly 
by the pn the respective II"" 

able memorial to thi ; itor and states- 

man, .■ ii< 1 to report i" the Legislature what further action >liall !><■ 
taken in i Ctful tribui' 

Senati concur), That a joint committee 
Members of the Assembly and six Senal nted t" attend 

the funeral of R 

The President. The subject-matter "I the 
resolutions sent by the Assemblj has been al- 
ready adopted bj resolutions just introduced and 
passed in the Senate, and no action is necessary 
upon the resolutions of the Assembly. 

Senator ( a » ;< ;eshall said : 

Mi. I It is not my purpose to pronounce 

.my extended eulogy upon the character, life and ser- 
if the distinguished man whose death we so pro- 
foundly regret. No eulogies, no words of praise, no 
arch of victory, no monumental pile is needed to en- 
dear him to the p ["he story of his useful and 
ible life illumines tin our his- 
tory, and the fruits « >f his incessant labors, read and 
known of all nun, give luster to his name and will 
i mi if) . "lie was a man, take him 



in iVUmovuun. 



for all in all, we shall nut look upon his like again;" a 
man of tireless activity and industry, and unsurpassed 
integrity in public, professional and private life. 

In tiie councils of the Nation he bore a conspicuous 
and honorable part in the legislation necessary for the 
preservation and reconstruction of the Union, and is 
one of the most distinguished figures in our political 
history. 

During nearly a quarter of a century of public ser- 
vice, when strong ami brilliant men of both political 
parties fell, either by temptation or wicked and mali- 
cious denunciation, ROSCOE CONKLING'S fair fame and 
honor was untouched. 

He was above alike corruption and suspicion. In 
an age when vituperation and calumny are the stock 
in trade of political warfare, he bore himself with such 
dignity and uprightness as to command the respect 
of all. 

Although assailed and hounded and set upon by 
those who were jealous of his well-earned and richly- 
deserved success — although misrepresented, misjudged 
and wronged, ami his proud, sensitive, high-spirited 
and chivalric soul wounded — yet the smell of fire was 
not on his garment. 

All the shafts of malice fell idle and harmless against 
the impenetrable armor of uprightness and self-respect, 
with which he was fully panoplied. 

lie was above them all. He rested then, as now, 
"the knight without fear and without reproach," in 
the perpetual sunshine of an undying tame. 



Legislative |?r occ cdings . 



Sincere in his convictions, he despised shams and 
false pretense and hypocritical professions. 

He thought for himself, and spoke what he thought. 

i loyal to his own convictions. Friendship could 

him from the path <>f duty. Ambition 

could m>t tempt him. Enemies did not and could not 

daunt him. He was honorable, manly foe; 

a loyal, true and constant friend. He never turned 

iack < if his hand \<> a friend, nor his 
enemy. He never "crooked the pregnant hinges of 
the knee that thrift might follow fawning." He never 
masqueraded. II you saw him, the same at 

all times, in all places, and under all circumstances 
the s( iul i if In mor. 

ithful found among the faithless. 
Unshaken, unseduced, unterrified; 
His loyalty kept, his love, his zeal, 
\< .1 numbi t , noi example, 
With linn wrought lo swerve from truth, 
his constant mind." 

At the full meridian of intellectual greatness, with 
many years of usefulness .nid renown before him, at 
a time when, more than ever before, his magnificent 
quired in the party of which he was 
-,1. many yeai a conspicuous member, this greal and 
good, honest, true and incorruptible man has 
the di eamle ; - sleep i il death. 

Why this must be is beyond human ken. Why this 
brave, strong, noble, lion-hearted man should go out 
from the activities and grand possibilities of a life 



in iYUmovuim. 



Mich as his, and when he was so much needed by his 
party, his State and country, we know not. 

To the stern decrees of an All-wise and Overruling 
Providence we bow with grief-stricken hearts. At the 
portals of his grave the whole civilized world mourns. 

" He did not fall 

Like drooping riowers that no man noticeth, 
But like a great branch of some stately tree, 

Rent in a tempest and flung down to death, 
Thick with green leafage — so that piteously 

Each passer by that ruin shuddereth, 
And saith, 'The gap this breach hath left is wide, 
The loss thereof can never be supplied.' " 

As a born leader of men, as statesman or legislator, 
as lawyer, as citizen, as friend, we honor him and re- 
vere his memory. 

To the loving and beloved wife and daughter, to his 
family, to the world, he has left a legacy greater, bet- 
ter and grander than earthly riches — a good name, a 
reputation untarnished, an integrity unimpaired ; tor, 
with Aristides, he could exclaim : " These are clean 
hands." 

Senator Low said : 

The Angel of Death has never taken a more kingly 
man, nor a more noble representative of all that is no- 
blest and greatest in our civilization. I have known 
ROSCOE CONKLING well for the past thirty years; and 
among the great men who have honored their country 
and the world during that eventful period, he was the 



Llcnislatiuc Proceedings. 



-t ,m<l wisest and noblest of them all. 

a born leader of men, an intellectual giant; he 

his equal on the platform or in th< 

of the Senate chamber. In his loi and public 

all t.iint or suspicion of wrong or 

improper acts. He set an example well worthy of the 

imitation of the young men ountry. Ili> loss 

will be long and keenly felt, and the mourning for his 

untimely taking off will be deep and lasting. 



Senator ( ' \\t< >k said : 



I foci, Mr. President, that seme expression of opinion 
should be given by those to whom k .ki.im, 

olitically opposed for so many years of his public 
life. 1 hi- Democratic party, to which he was always so 
honoral i !y opposed, found in 

him an upright, an honorable, a consistent and a persist- 
ent political foe. He was of that class of men wl 

ly upon his conviction of what was proper and 
right, upon principle. He always advocated from 
sistency of purpi.se. and a direct manly belief that it 
was just and honorable. He was of that class of men, so 
rare in out community, who are governed absolutely by 
nviction, and who rise, al times, higher 
than party The life of R.OSCOE CoNKLINd 

thai was fraught with great and noble deeds. 
n ss he was a representative faith- 
ful to his trust, faithful to his people in the advocacy of 
all public measures which, in his judgment, redounded 
to the public benefit. Faithful in all respects. His 



In iUcnuuiam. 



services will be forever recognized and appreciated, not 
only by the people of the district which he so well rep- 
resented, and by the people of the State whose Sena- 
tor he was for two terms in the Senate of the United 
States ; but, sir, he has found a place in the hearts of 
all the people who believe that honesty of purpose and 
devotion to country rise paramount to all other consid- 
erations. I heartily second the adoption of the resolu- 
tion. 

Senator Coggeshall offered the following: 

d. As a token of respect 10 the memorj of the deceased, 

that llie Senate do now adjourn. 



The resolution was adopted. 



In Assembly: 

April 18, 1888. 
Mr. Beatty offered the following resolution : 

n! the Senate concur), That a joint committee of nine 
Members of the Assembly and six Senators be appointed to attend 
the funeral of Hon. RoscOE CoNKLING. 

The resolution was unanimously adopted. 



legislative ^Proceedings. 



in Senate: 

April 18, L888 
Senator ( esiiall offered the following: 

Whereas, The funeral "t the Hon. Ri 
in the city of New York on Friday, the twentieth insiant, 

His distinguishi n public life and h 

.1 marked expression ui the high 

i which he- « the State, therefore, 
be it 

■ if the Assembly concur:, That when the Senate and As- 
idjourn this evening, it be until Monday evening at a quarter 
past eight •''cluck. 

The Presideni put the question, and the reso- 
lution was adopted. 

The Presideni announced the following com- 
mittees, pursuant to the concurrent resolutions oi 
the Senate and Assembly, to attend the funeral 
of the lion. Roscoi Conkling, and to make ar- 
rangements for appropriate memorial services by 
the Legislature: Senators Coggeshall, Lewis, 
Sw i:i i . LauGHLIN, MuRPin and Ri ii n ; also. 
to attend the funeral in the city of New York: 
Senati irs < oggi -ii vll, Sweet, Van C< n i . O'Cois 
NOR, C \\ Ti iK and Si AULER. 

1 he Assembly returned the resolution relative 



in iYlcmoviam. 



to tin: death of the Hon. Roscoe Conkling, with 
a message that they had concurred in the pas- 
sage of the same without amendment, and had 
appointed as a committee on the part of the 
House, Messrs. Husted, Gallagher, Huntting, 
Enz, Beattv, Blumenthal, John Martin, Gor- 
don and Kent. 



In Assembly: 

April 19, 1888. 

The Senate sent for concurrence the follow 
ing resolutions : 

, That the Senate of the State of New York learns with 

deep sorrow and profound regret of the death of the Hon. R i 

Conkling. His long and distinguished services in Congress as a 
Representative and Senator from the State of New York, his great 
intellectual attainments and brilliant record, his honesty of public 
career and integrity, his loyalty of friendship and nobility of char- 
acter, his illustrious and successful achievements, make his name 
and fame the common heritage of our State and Nation, and enshrine 
him in the hearts of the people. 

•' (if the Senate concur). That a committee of live Sena- 
tors and nine Members of the Assembly be appointed by the Presi- 
dent of the Senate and the Speaker of the Assembly to attend the 
funeral of Mr. Conkling, and to make arrangements for appropriate 
memorial services by the Legislature. 

The resolutions were unanimous!)' adopted. 



L cnislnti u c 3Pvo cccdinn s. 



The 5 announced the following com- 

mittee to attend the funeral of the 1 1cm. R 
' i.ix(i and ii> draft resolutions: Mr. II • 

rED, Mr. Gali aghi r, M r. II' nt nxu, Mr. 1 
Mr. Beatty, Mr. Bi .ienthal, Mr. John Mak- 

,, Mr. Gordon and Mr. K 

rhe Senate sent for concurrence the follow- 
in- resolution : 

the Hon. K 
in ihc N lay, the twentieth instant; and 

lis distinguished services in public life and h 
as a statesm 
with which he was lie Id by I 

if tin mi ill i at when the Senate and As- 

sembly ailiourn this i until Monday evening next at a 

quarter past ei 



The resolution was adopted. 



in iYlcmoviam. 



in Assembly : 

Monday Evening, 

April SO, 1888. 

The Senate sent for concurrence a resolution 
in tlie words following : 

(if the Assembly concur), That a joint committee having in 
charge the exercises in memory of the late Roscoe Conkling, be ir- 
quested to invite to attend the exercises the members of the present 
Congress, and such members of preceding sessions as sat in the House 
or Senate with Mr. Conkling. 



The resolution was adopted. 



WtoceeAinas in Hoint Session 



SENATE AND ASSEMBLY 



JVcadcmu. of ptttsic : 

May 9, 1888. 

The Legislature having met in Joint Session 
at the Academy of Music, in the city of Al- 
bany, in pursuance of arrangements made by the 
foint Memorial Committee, the Hon. Edward 
F. Jones, Lieutenant-Governor and President of 
the Senate, in the Chair, on calling the assem- 
blage to order, said : 

It is of ROSCOE CONKLING we would speak. Not 
in words of praise, for none that we could utter would 
place him higher in the estimation of his countrymen, 
for his fame now perches on the highest pinnacle of 
renown. 

Not in tones of affection, for the tender language of 
love is the sacred property of those nearer and dearer 
to him than we, who only knew him as a public man, 
can ever be. 



^Proceedings in itoint Session. 



Our language is inspired by h tions. It i> 

with tributi I that wc would humbly endow 

his memory. 

Winn death claims .is its victim an honi 
in. m, the prejudices of partisanship fade away, and in 
this instance, wc not only remember that the man w.i^ 
great, but tli.it he honored his greatness with his char- 
.u tcr, and all ha >ten to n Wc 

iccasion and vie each with tin- other 
his grave with never-fading flowers. We 
assemble this evening for tin- purpose "l' embalming 
his memory with tributes ol eloquence. 

The Committee having tin- arrangements in charge, 
have wisely to perform this duty, the one who 

could il" it best, R.OSCOE CONKLING'S friend, th 

; i ( ,. [NGERSOLL, whom it is my privilege t<> 
it I'' you. 



iVlcmoviul Address 



ROSCOE CONKLING 



ilobcvt (G. I n iic vso U , 



New York State Legislature, at Albany, N. Y. 



itlemovuil JVdclvess. 



Roscoe CoNKLiNG--a great man, 
an orator, a statesman, a law- 
yer, a distinguished citizen of the 
Republic, in the zenith of his fame 
and power has reached his journey's 
end ; and we are met, here in the 
city of his birth, to pay our tribute to 
his worth and work. He earned and 
held a proud position in the public 
thought. He stood for independ- 
ence, for courage, and above all for 
absolute integrity, and his name was 
known and honored by many mil- 
lions of his fellow men. 

The literature of many lands is 
rich with the tributes that gratitude, 



a yUcmovunn. 



admiration and love have paid to 

the l^, r t . it and In >n< »re< I dead. Lhese 
t nl mtes i liscl( >se the i hara< ter ol na- 
tions, the ideals ol the human race. 
I n them we 1 1 n< 1 the estimates < »l 
greatness the deeds and lives that 
challenged praise and thrilled the 
hearts oi men. 

I n the ] >resen< e ol death, the g< >< >d 
man judges as he would be judged. 
He km i\\ s that nun an- i >nly frag, 
ments that the greatest walk in 
shadow, a\m\ that faults and failures 
mingle with the lives ol all. 

I n the grave sh< mid 1 >e I mried the 
prejudices and passions born oi ton- 
lint. ( liantv sh< n 1 1 < I h< >ld the scales 
in which arc weighed the deeds ol 
men. Peculiarities, traits 1 m »rn i >t l< >- 
calit) and surroundings these are 

I Hit the dllst . i| the l\l< -e these are 



iloscoc (fcmUlimv 



accidents, drapery, clothes, fashions, 
that have nothing to do with the 

man except to hide his character. 
They are the clouds that cling to 
mountains. 1 line gives us clearer 
vision. That which was merely local 
lades away. The words of envy are 
forgotten, and all there is of sterling' 
worth remains. He who was called 
a partisan is a patriot. The revolu- 
tionist and the outlaw are the found- 
ers of nations, and he who was re- 
garded as a scheming, selfish politi- 
cian becomes a statesman, a philoso- 
pher, whose words and deeds shed 
light. 

Fortunate is that nation great 
enough to know the great. When 
a great man dies — one who has 
nobly fought the battle of a life, 
who has been faithful to every trust, 



In Ttlcmovuim. 



,ind has uttered his highest, no- 
blest thought one who has stood 
I >r< uulK I >\ the right in spite < »l jeer 
and taunt, neither .stopped l>\ foe 
nor swerved l>\ friend in honoring 
him, in speaking words o\ praise 
ami love above his dust, we pa) a 
tribute to ourselves. 

1 low pot »r this w< ►rid would be 
without its graves, without the mem- 
ories ol its mighty dead. Only the 

\ I >H eless Speak f< H"e\ '( T. 

Intelligence, integrity and courag< 
are the great pillars that support the 
State. 

Above all, the citizens i >t a tree 
natu »n sh< > l 1 1 < 1 h< >n< >r the 1 >ra\ e and 
indei tendent man the man i >l stain- 
less integrity, oi will and intellect- 
ual force. Su( h men are the At- 
lases on whose mighty shoulders 



M.OSCOJC (TonUUmv 



rest the great fabric of the repub- 
lic. Flatterers, cringers, crawlers, 
time-servers are the dangerous citi- 
zens of a democracy. The)' who 
gain applause and power by pan- 
dering to the mistakes, the preju- 
dices and passions of the multitude, 
are the enemies of liberty. 

When the intelligent submit to 
the clamor of the many, anarchy be- 
gins and the republic reaches the 
edo-e of chaos. Mediocrity, touched 
with ambition, flatters the base and 
calumniates the great, while the true 
patriot, who will do neither, is often 
sacrificed. 

In a government of the people 
a leader should be a teacher — he 
should carry the torch of truth. 

Most people are the slaves of 
habit — followers of custom — -believ- 



In iUcmovi.un. 



ers in the wisdom ol the past and 
w ere it n< »t i« >r 1 >ra\ e ant 1 s| >lendid 
souls, "the dust oi antique time 
would In- Linswept, and mountain- 
ous error be too highly helped tor 
truth t" overpeer. ( ustom is a 
prison, locked and barred by those 
who long ago were dust, the keys 
oi which are in the keeping ol the 
dead. 

Nothing is grander than when a 
strong, intrepid man breaks chains, 
levels walls a\)(\ breasts the many- 
headed mob like some great chit 
that meets and mocks the innumer- 
able billows ol the sea. 

1 he p< tlitician hastens t< > agree 
with the majority insists that their 
prejudice is patriotism, that their 
ignorance is wisdom; not that he 
loves them, but because In- loves 



%OSCOZ (fonUUmv 



himself. The statesman, the real 
reformer, points out the mistakes of 
the multitude, attacks the prejudices 
of his countrymen, laughs at their 
follies, denounces their cruelties, en- 
lightens and enlarges their minds 
and educates the conscience — not 
because he loves himself, but be- 
cause he loves and serves the right 
and wishes to make his country 
great and free. 

With him defeat is but a spur to 
further effort. He who refuses to 
stoop, who cannot be bribed by the 
promise of success, or the fear of fail- 
ure — who walks the highway of the 
right, and in disaster stands erect, 
is the only victor. Nothing is more 
despicable than to reach fame bv 
crawling, — position by cringing. 

\\ hen real history shall be writ- 



in iUcnuuiam. 



ten 1>\ the truthful and the wise, 
these men, these kneelers at the 
shrines ol chance and fraud, these 
brazen idols worshipped once as 
gods, will be the very food ol scorn, 
w hile tin »se \\ li< » I m »re the 1 >un len i it 
defeat, who earned and kept their 
self-respect, who would not how to 
man or men for place or power, will 
wear upon their brows the laurel 
mingled with the oak. 

Iv is( i ie ( "' )NK1 [NG was a man i >\ 
superb courage. 

He not < ml) a< ted without tear. 
but he had that fortitude ol soul 
that bears the consequences o\ the 
( < >urse pursued without a >m] >hunt. 
lie was charged with being proud. 
1 he < harge was true he was | in tud. 
I I is knees were as inflexible .is the 
" imw ed'jeal )le .\\)(\ <jnarled oak, 1 Hit 



%ascoc (fcmhUnri. 



he was not vain. Vanity rests on 
the opinion of others — pride, on our 
own. The source of vanity is from 
without --of pride, from within. 
Vanity is a vane that turns, a wil- 
low that bends, with every breeze 
— pride is the oak that defies the 
storm. One is cloud — the other 
rock. One is weakness — the other 
strength. 

This imperious man entered pub- 
lic life in the dawn of the reforma- 
tion — at a time when the country 
needed men of pride, of principle 
and courage. The institution of 
slavery had poisoned all the springs 
of power. Before this crime am- 
bition fell upon its knees, — politi- 
cians, judges, clergvmen, and mer- 
chant-princes bowed low and hum- 
bly, with their hats in their hands. 



in iUcnnu'iain. 



Th< real friend ol man was de- 

iii mm ed as the enemy oi his i < >un- 
tn the real enem) ol the human 
race was called a statesman and a 
patriot. Slaver) was the bond and 
I dcdge i 'I ] iea< e, "I unit >n, and na- 
ti< mal greatness. 1 he temple < >1 
American liberty was finished the 
auction-block was the corner-stone. 

1 1 is hard t< i o mceive i >i the utter 
deirn »ralizati< »n, < >t the | m ditical I tlind- 
ness and muiK irality , ol the | >at ri< it i< 
dishonesty, oi the cruelty and deg- 
radation ol a people who supple- 
mented the mi < >m| (arable I )e< lara- 
tion < »t Independence with the Fugi- 
tive Slave Law. 

Think ol the honored statesmen 
o| that ignoble time who wallowed 
m this mire, .w'id who, decorated 
with dripping tilth, received the 



iloscoe (Tcmhlimv 



plaudits of their fellow-men. The 
noble, the really patriotic, were the 
victims of mobs, and the shameless 
were clad in the robes of office. 

But let us speak no word of 
blame — let us feel that each one 
acted according to his light — ac- 
cording to his darkness. 

At last the conflict came. The 
hosts ol light and darkness pre- 
pared to meet upon the fields of 
war. I he question was presented: 
Shall the Republic be slave or 
free? The Republican party had 
triumphed at the polls. The great- 
est man in our history was Presi- 
dent elect. The victors were ap- 
palled — they shrank from the great 
responsibility of success. In the 
presence of rebellion they hesitated 
-they offered to return the fruits 



In illcmovium. 



< >t v ictor) . II i '| >ing t< i a\ ert \\ ar 
they were willing that slaver) should 
be* i >me imm< >rtal. An amendment 
to the Constitution was proposed, to 
the effect that no subsequent amend- 
ment should ever be made that in 
any way should interfere with the 
right oi man to .steal his fellow-men. 

I his, the most marvelous propo- 
sition (.'\'rr submitted to a ( ongress 
i >t i ivilized men, received m the 
Ilou.se an overwhelming majority, 
and the necessary two-thirds in tin- 
Senate. I he Ke| ml )ln an | »arty, in 
the moment o\ its triumph, deserted 
even principle for which it had so 
gallantly contended, and with the 
trembling hands ol fear laid its con- 
victions on the altar oi compromise. 

The ( )ld ( ruard, numbering but 
sixtv-five m the Mouse, stood as 



HUiscoc ©onfetittfl. 



firm as the three hundred at Ther- 
mopylae. Thaddeus Stevens — as 
maliciously right as any other man 
was ever wrong — refused to kneel. 
Owen Lovejoy, remembering his 
brother's noble blood, refused to 
surrender, and on the edge of dis- 
union, in the shadow of civil war, 
with the air filled with sounds of 
dreadful preparation, while the Re- 
publican part}- was retracing its 

Steps, RoSCOE CoNKLING Voted No. 

I his puts a wreath of glory on his 
tomb. From that vote to the last 
moment of his life he was a cham- 
pion of equal rights, stanch and 
stalwart. 

Prom that moment he stood in 
the front rank. He newer wavered 
and he never swerved. By his de- 
votion to principle — his courage 



in ill c in o via in. 



tin- s| >lend< »r < »t his dicti* >n. 1>\ his 
varied and profound knowledge, his 
( ( in s< untu »us dev( >tion t> i the great 
cause, and 1 >\ his intellectual m ope 
and grasp, he won and held the 
admiration <>l his fellow-men. 

Disasters in the held, reverses at 
the p< >lls, < 1 1< 1 n< it an<l * < >nM n< it 
shake his courage or his faith. Il< 
knew the ghastly meaning <>l defeat. 
IT knew that the great ship that 
slavery sought to strand and wreck 
was freighted with the worlds sub- 
limest hope. 

He 1 tattled l< )i" a nation s life 
for the rights oi slaves the dignity 
i >t lal K ir, and the hi >erty i >i all. 1 I e 
guarded with a lathers (are the 
rights <>l the hunted, the hated ,\nd 
( lesi used, lie atta< ke< 1 the -,,i\ age 
statutes <>l the reconstructed States 



■i£oscoe (fonUUng. 



with a torrent of invective, scorn and 
execration. He was not satisfied 
until the freedman was an Ameri 
can Citizen — clothed with every 
civil right — until the Constitution 
was his shield — until the ballot was 
his sword. 

And long after we are dead, the 
colored man in this and other lands 
will speak his name in reverence 
and love. Others wavered, hut he 
stood firm ; some were false, but he 
was proudly true — fearlessly faith- 
ful unto death. 

He gladly, proudly grasped the 
hands of colored men who stood 
with him as makers of our laws, 
and treated them as equals and as 
friends. I he cry of "social equal- 
ity" coined and uttered by the cruel 
and the base, was to him the ex- 



in iUcmoviam. 



pression oi a greal and splendid 
truth. He knew that it i man ran 
be ill* equal oi one he robs that 
the intelligent and unjust are n< »t the 
superiors oi the ignorant and hon- 
est and he also felt, and proucih 
felt, that it he were not too great to 
reach the hand < it h* -1 j i a\m\ n i i ig 
nition to the slave, no other Senator 
could nghtfull) refuse. 

\\ e rise I >\ raising i ithers an< I 
he who stoops above the- fallen, 
stands erect. 

Nothing ran l)i- grander than to 
sow the seeds oi noble thoughts and 
virtuous deeds to liberate the bod- 
ies and the souls ot men to r.yvw 
the grateful homage oi a race and 
then, m life's last shadowy hum-, to 
know that the historian oi Libert) will 
be compelled to write your name. 



iloscoc (fcmHUmi. 



There arc no words intense enough, 
— with heart enough — to express 
my admiration for the great and 
gallant souls who have in every age 
and every land upheld the right, 
and who have lived and died for 
freedom's sake. 

In our lives have been the grand- 
est years that man has lived, that 
Time has measured l>v the flight 
of worlds. 

The history of that great Party 
that let the oppressed go free — that 
lifted our nation from the depths 
of savagery to freedoms cloudless 
heights, and tore with holy hands 
from every law the words that sanc- 
tified the cruelty of man, is the 
most glorious in the annals of our 
race. Never before was there such 
a moral exaltation — never a part) - 



in iUciiUH'i.im. 



with a purpose so pure and high. 
1 1 was the embodied c< >ns< ience i »1 
a nation,, the enthusiasm oi a peo- 
ple guided by wisdom, the imper- 
sonation <>t justice; and the sub- 
lime \ ict< >r\ achie\ ed l< >a< lei 1 even 
the conquered with all the rights 
that freedom can bestow. 

Roscof Conkling was an abso- 
lutely honest man. 

1 1 i >nesty is the i iak an oind which 
all i ither virtues cling. \\ ithout 
that they fall, and groveling die in 
weeds and dust. 1 I e believed that 
a natmn should discharge its obli- 
gations. IK- knew that a promise 
could not be made often enough, or 
emphatic enough, to take the place 
of payment. I [e felt that the prom- 
ise ol the government was the prom- 
ise i >1 even citizen that a nati< >nal 



%ascaz (Conhlimv 



obligation was a personal debt, and 
that no possible combination of 

words and pictures could take the 
place of coin. He uttered the 
splendid truth that "the higher ob- 
ligations among men are not set 
down in writing signed and sealed, 
but reside in honor." He knew 
that repudiation was the sacrifice of 
honor— the death of the national 
soul. He knew that without char- 
acter, without integrity, there is no 
wealth, and that below poverty, be- 
low bankruptcy, is the rayless abyss 
ot repudiation. He upheld the 
sacredness of contracts, of plighted 
national faith, and helped to save 
and keep the honor of his native 
land. This adds another laurel to 
his brow. 

He was the ideal representative, 



n iUcmovuun. 



iaithlul and ino >rruptil >le. I I e be- 
lieved that his constituents and his 
country were entitled to the fruit oi 
his experience, to his best .\\m\ high- 
est thi night. \ i i man ever held the 
standard oi responsibility higher 
than he. 1 I e \ < »ted acc< >rding t< > his 
judgment, his conscience. 11< made 
no bargains he neither bought 
nor sold. 

I 1 1 c< trrect evils, al m ihsh al tuses 
An*\ inaugurate reforms, he believed 
was not onl) the duty, but the privi- 
lege, i >i a legislator. I I e neither 
sold ik »r nit >rtgaged himself. He 
was in Congress during the years 
oi vast expenditure, oi war and 
waste when the credit oi the na- 
tion was loaned to individuals 
when claims were thick as lea\ es 
m I Line, when tin- amendment i >l a 



IRoscoc (CcmUlimv 



statute, the change of a single word, 
meant millions, and when empires 
were given to corporations. He 
stood at the summit of his power- 
peer of the greatest — a leader tried 
and trusted. He had the tastes of 
a prince, the fortune of a peasant, 
and yet he never swerved. No 
corporation was great enough or 
rich enough to purchase him. His 
vote could not be bought "for all 
the sun sees, or the close earth 
wombs, or the profound seas hide. 
His hand was never touched by any 
bribe, and on his soul there never 
was a sordid stain. Poverty was 
his priceless crown. 

Above his marvelous intellect- 
ual gifts — above all place he ever 
reached, — above the ermine he re- 
fused, — rises his integrity like some 



in iUemovi.un. 



great mountain peak and there it 
stands, firm as the earth beneath, 

] mre .i-- the stars al >< >\ e. 

He \\ as a great law \ er. 1 I e un- 
derstood the frame-work, the anat- 
• »m \ , tin- ti iimdatu >ns i >l law ; was 
familiar with tin- great streams and 
currents and tides ol authority. 

I 1 e knew the hist< >rv » >l legisla- 
tion tin- principles that have been 
settled upon the fields i 'I w ar. I I e 
knew the maxims, those crystalli- 
zations ot i ommon sense, those hand- 
grenades o| argument. lie was not 
.i i ase-lawyer a decision index, < >r 
an echo; he was original, thought- 
ful and pr< >f< >und. I [e had breadth 
and scope, resource, learning, logic, 
and ab< »ve all, a sense i >| jusl i< e. 
lie was painstaking and conscien- 
tious anxious to know the tacts 



2.>oscoc (fonHUng. 



preparing for every attack, ready 
for every defense. He rested only 
when the end was reached. Dur- 
ing the contest, he neither sent nor 
received a flag of truce. He was 
true to his clients — making - their 
case his. Feeling responsibility, he 
listened patiently to details, and to 
his industry there were only the 
limits of time and strength. He 
was a student of the Constitution. 
He knew the boundaries of State 
and Federal jurisdiction, and no 
man was more familiar with those 
great decisions that are the peaks 
and promontories, the headlands and 
the beacons, of the law. 

He was an orator, — earnest, logi- 
cal, intense and picturesque. He 
laid the foundation with care, with 
accuracy and skill, and rose by 



In iUcmoviam. 



"cold gradation and well-balanced 
form from the corner-stone oi state- 
ment ti i the d< uned < i >nclusi< »n. I I e 
filled the stage. 1 [e satisfied the 
eye — the audience was his. lie 
had that indefinable thing called 
presence. 1 all, commanding, erect 

am] >le in speech, gra< eful in c< »m- 
] diment, I itanic in denun< lation, 
rich in illustration, prodigal oi com- 
parison a\m\ metaphor and his 
sentences, measured and rhythmi- 
cal, fell like music on the enrap- 
tured throng. 

lie abhorred the Pharisee, and 
loathed all conscientious fraud. lie 
had a profound aversion for those 
who insist on putting base motives 
back ol the good deeds oi others. 
I I e \\ i >re n< i mask. I I e knew his 
friends his enemies knew him. 



2>e>scoc (fonhUmv 



He had no patience with pre- 
tense — with patriotic reasons for 
unmanly acts. He did his work 
and bravely spoke his thought. 

Sensitive to the last degree, he 
keenly felt the blows and stabs of 
the envious and obscure — of the 
smallest, of the weakest — but the 
greatest could not drive him from 
conviction's held. He would not 
stoop to ask or give an explanation. 
He left his words and deeds to 
justify themselves. 

He held in light esteem a friend 
who heard with half-believing ears 
the slander of a foe. He walked 
a highway of his own, and kept 
the company of his self-respect. He 
would not turn aside to avoid a 
foe — to greet or gain a friend. 

In his nature there was no com- 



. n JUcmoviam. 



I in imise. 1 < > him there were 1 >ut 
two paths the right and wrong. 
lie was malignei I, misre] (resented 
and misunderstood— 1 >n t he would 
not answer. He knew that char- 
acter speaks louder far than any 
words. I [e was as silent then as 
he is n< >w and his suen< e, 1 letter 
than any form o\ speech, refuted 
every charge. 

I [e was an American pr< aid i »i 
his country, that was and ever will 
be ] >r< md ol him. He did not tmd 
perfecti< >n < >nl\ in i ither lands. 1 le 
did not grow small and shrunken, 
withered and apologetic, m the pres- 
ence oi those upon whom greatness 
had 1 Kiu thrust by chance. 1 1 e 
(ould not be overawed 1>\ dukes or 
l( irds, n< >r flattered int< > \ ertel irate- 
less subserviency 1>\ the patronizing 



Sloscoc (TonUUnn. 



smiles of kings. In the midst of 
conventionalities he had the feeling 
of suffocation. He believed in the 
royalty of man, in the sovereignty 
of the citizen, and in the matchless 
greatness of this Republic. 

He was of the classic mould — 
a figure from the antique world. 
He had the pose of the great stat- 
ues — the pride and bearing of the 
intellectual Greek, of the conquering 
Roman, and he stood in the wide 
free air, as though within his veins 
there flowed the blood of a hundred 
kings. 

And as he lived he died. Proudly 
he entered the darkness — or the 
dawn --that we call death. Un- 
shrinkingly he passed beyond our 
horizon, beyond the twilight's pur- 
ple hills, beyond the utmost reach 



in iUcmoviam. 



ol human harm or help to that 
vast realm ol silence or ol jo\ 
where the innumerable dwell, and 
he has left with us his wealth oi 
thought and (\<v(\ the memory ol 
a brave, imperious, honest man, 
who bowed alone to death. 

Mr. Husti i' said : 

Mr. Chairman. I move that the thanks of 
the Legislature be tendered in the Hon. k 
G. [ngersoll, lor tin- masterly oration to which 
we have listened, ami. sir. in making this motion, 
I am confident that I express the unanimous 
sentimenl of this body, when I say that in purity 
<>f style, in poetic expression, in cogency ol state- 
ment ami brilliancy of rhetoric it stands unri- 
valed among tin- eulogies ol either ancient or 
modern days. As effective as Demosthenes, as 
polished as ( icero, us ornate as Burke, as schol 
arly as Gladstone, the orator ol the evening, in 
surpassing others, lias eclipsed himself. 

Senator Coccksiiai.i said : 

Mr. Chairman. NO words that I can niter 



IRoscoc (jTonUUmv 



will add to the able and eloquent eulogy pro- 
nounced by Mr. Ingersoll upon the life, char- 
acter and services ol Roscoe Conkling. 

It is indeed a worthy tribute by one of Amer- 
ica's most gifted orators to one of the foremost 
men of his time. 

On behalf of the Senate and Assembly, 1 
second the motion of the gentleman from West- 
chester. 



CONCURRENT RESOLUTIONS. 



In .Assembly: 

January 17, l B89. 
/(if ilit- Senate concur), Thai there be printed undei ilie 
direction of the Clerks of ihc Senate and Assembly, four thousand 
U.oool copies of the proceedings of the Legislature and [lie memorial 
oration of Col. Robert G. [ngersoll, on the death of ex-Senator Ros- 
coe Conkling, foi the use of the members of the Legislature, and 
one thousand (1,000) copies for the officers and reporters, to be dis- 
tributed by the Clerks <ii each 1 1 ■ > 1 1 - • ■ . 

I'.i ordei ol the Assembly, 

C. A CHICKERING, Clerk. 

STATE ol- NEW YORK: STATE OF NEW YORK : 

[n Assembly, January 18. 1889. In Senate, Jannarj 1 

The amendment of the Senate duly Passed with the follov 
concurred in. Strike out "4,000" and insert "8,000." 

By order of the Assemc Strike out "1,000" and insert "2,000." 

( . A. rilli KERING, Bj ordei ol the Senate. 

JOHN' S. KENYON, 
1 



In Senate: 

January 18, 1889. 

ved (if the Assembly concur'. That of the 3,ooo extra copies of 
the Conkling Memoriai ordered printed, that 1,000 copies be dis- 
tributed to the State officers. 

STATE OK NEW YORK: STATE Of NEW YORK: 

In Assembly, ' In Senate, Jan 

urred in without amendment. The foregoing resolution was passed. 

By on mbly. By order of the Senate. 

C. A CHICKERING, JOHN S. KENYON, 
- 



